Savory Chicken

Had dinner last night at their Festivall Mall branch. I was amazed at how they served heaping portions of pancit. I thought it was good for 2 persons at most but it's almost good enough for 3 persons. We also ordered Shanghai rolls and their Savory Chicken. What I noticed in most Chinese restaurants is that most of their food are dry, tasty, but a bit dry. The lumpia, pancit, and even the chicken tastes good but lacks the juiciness in them. But above everything else, we were stuffed. Might try other viands when we think of having chicken again.

The Banana Experience

This is one of the newest places I found in Festival Mall in Alabang. Its The Banana Experience (it's not what you're thinking about). It's a new healthy option for your afternoon merienda, well not so much. Well, it is a banana and its still loaded with a lot of vitamins but once you mix it with sugar, ice cream, sweet toppings and what nots, well let's just say you'll get a bit of a sugar rush.

The one I liked is the turon topped with a vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup. What got me is that the turon is still warm then they place the cold ice cream on top so you have to eat it quite fast. The sensation is enjoyable as the warm turon and cold ice cream mix in your mouth. Plus it's just P50.

As for my son, he ordered the banana on a stick. Its a fresh banana dipped in vanilla and sprinkled with rainbow sprinkles. You can eat it like a drumstick but since the banana is big. We had to slice it to smaller bits for my son.

Like I said, this is a good alternative for the afternoon merienda or just a quick snack in the mall. It's partly healthy and it's very inexpensive.

PS3 Slim

Yes, I did buy myself a PS3 slim. And yes, its been with me for a week and i have been playing with it with all my free time and some of my not so free time. First things first. In the box is the console, 1 DS3 sixaxis controller, 1 composite av cable, manual, power cable, and manual. It seems that the asian version does not have the complementary welcome dvd from sony because I found none in my box.

What you see in the pics is an asian version 120GB PS3 slim. I bought that version because 1)The voltage is set at 230v, I won't be needing a transformer when I plug it in the wall socket and 2)It's a thousand pesos cheaper than the US version. I don't get what the fuss about the US version for it to be a tad more expensive. Main differences that I see between the two is that the US version is 110v and the confirm button is "x" as opposed to the asian version's "o" button. Another theory is because of the blu ray player. Most blu ray discs that come in are from the US. But from what I heard, most new blu ray discs are already region free.

As of now, I don't have a HD tv so the console is hooked to my 21" JVC flat screen standard tv. I currently have one game which is Infamous. Surprisingly, the graphics still looks pretty sharp. Scenes wherein i'm by the pier area are very very sharp. When faced with a lot of buildings, cars, people it blurs a bit but still pretty sharp.

As a media center, I downloaded TVersity on my laptop so that I could connect it to the console. The two work pretty well together. Just point my browser to my laptop and presto, instant media center. All my movies, tv shows, and anime can now be streamed to my tv. I don't have to put the files on a disc or a flash drive.

Also just a few hours after I bought and hooked up the PS3 to my tv I updated the software and my XMB has that glittery effect. Didn't read much about what the update does but visually, the glittery effect is all that I see.

The problem now is getting a new LCD HD TV to go with the console to maximize its potential. I also hope to borrow games from some of my friends. Buying games and finishing it in 2 weeks will be very hard for my pocket.

FIC aka fruits in ice cream

One of my favorite ice cream stalls in ATC relocated just adjacent Odyssey. I know they did it last month (and I was there when it opened) and I've been my lazy self that's why I just talked about this. Well, enough about me. Let's talk about the shop. Now, they have a bigger place with tables and chairs where we could enjoy our ice cream while sitting down in their quaint little corner. Also they are now serving ice cream in ceramic bowls and normal stainless utensils for dine in customers. It's a nice addition but I prefer my ice cream on their wafer cones with either Strawberry or Choco Mint. Yum!

By the way, they also added shakes, sundaes, and some of their own creations to the mix. Now we have more choices to sit back, relax, and enjoy an afternoon.

Choro-Q

You just got to hand it to Takara Tomy they make a lot of very nice toys. I'm beginning to drawn to their works. Started with these two. A gc8 and an ae86 pull back pieces. They're just a little bigger than a P5 peso coin. While I was playing with the trueno I noticed that it kinda goes faster even after i've released it and seems to hop a bit when that happens because of the speed boost. Checked the box again and it said 2-speed. What do you know? A pull back that has some sort of VTEC yo?! (kidding!) After talking to a friend that has a couple of these, he said that I should place a coin at that back part. There is a little holder at the back of the coin to help balance out the weight. I had lots of fun with it. Only problem is I couldn't really find a place to fully utilize it. Guess I gotta get one of those tracks they also made for these babies or just put them in the display case and oogle at them.

Rechargeable Batteries & Charger

After getting the mini r/c you just gotta have spare batteries or buy really often. Since everyone is thinking "green" we got the rechargeable ones from cdr-king (as usual). We bought the charger that has two AAA batteries that come with it plus two other. Good thing about the charger is it charges AA, AAA and even a 9v battery. Sad thing is, the sales person I talked too said that the led light it has should turn green after charging is complete. I have been using it a couple of times and I haven't seen it turn to green (good thing there are instructions in the back on how long a certain battery is needed to be charged). My brother has one of these chargers and he too said that he hasn't seen it turn to green either. Anyways, it's a good bang for the back. And since it's does recharge batteries it lessens the electronic waste here in our house.

Brother's Burgers Specials

After watching too much true blood and seeing as the setting is mostly in the bar/resto. People in the background usually order fries, burgers, and beer. This got me to remember the sale the Brother's had a month ago. They shaved half the price of the 1/2 pound burger. After one burger and a couple orders of fries and a choice of soda. You'll be sure you just gained 1/2 a pound. I just wish they do another half price promo soon. I'm just soooo craving for their burgers again.

Caul ER by Takara Tomy

This has been in shelves of different toy stores around the metro for quite sometime now. Just recently, curiosity got me and now one is in my possession. It's a mini r/c car that fits the palm of my hand. It also comes with a very small remote that could easily be lost in your pocket. Was very excited unboxing it and putting it together (minus the part that I had to put very tiny stickers on various parts of the car to make it look less of just a shape of a plastic car). Placed the batteries and tried playing with it. While I was playing with it, I found out a not so good thing about it. The damned thing is controlled through IR. Meaning, you had to have the remote ALWAYS pointed at the car. It was quite annoying at first but then I realized that it was meant to be played on tables or short circuits that could be placed on flat floors so that you don't have to move a bit. After playing with it more, I came to realize that it is fun trying to dodge coffee mugs, pencils or other obstacles you would normally find in an office table. Great for killing time. Plus it's small enough to put in your pocket after your done playing with it.

Tuding's

If you're from the south I bet you've either heard of or even tried one of the three branches they have (muntinlupa, pacita, binan). Last night was my return to Tuding's. I haven't eaten at this place for quite sometime since it became out of my way. Since we were in the area, might as well eat here. They have now occupied the adjacent lot (foremerly a family ktv bar/restaurant) and they now have a lot more space for tables and chairs. They also added Tapsi, Toci, and I think Bangsi to their menu (wasn't really paying attention since all I wanted was the Pork chop. haha!)

After ordering my usual Porck chop, fried egg with fried rice (extra rice and egg please) mixed crushed chili to catsup (for that added zing) and had my fill. Eventhough it's just a simple meal but it just has that extra something that makes you come back.

The Sizzling Pepper Steak

We recently tried out the new steak house that just opened at Festival Mall Alabang. It's called The Sizzling Pepper Steak (owned and operated by Teryaki Boy Group Inc.). It's a cross between japanese style cooking with western steak. The place has the same feel like Sango Master Burger. It has large LCD tv's showing how to properly cook the steak and maintain its taste. It's because they serve it almost instantly that you have a part in cooking your food. I also read in the menu (before saying to myself "oh sh*t! the menus' written in japanese!" - good thing it had translations at the bottom. hahaha!) that their hot plate plays a role in properly cooking the steak.

After taking a long hard look at the menu I decided to order Fresh Mango shake and Katsuni (breaded pepper steak with scrambled eggs cooked around it served with their special sauce topped with onion leeks) while my wife ordered Teryaki Hamburg and Iced Tea.

The food was very filling and I enjoyed it. I just wish that I didn't have a snack before we ate. I was stuffed after our meal.

McDonald's Twister Fries

Thanks to the showing of Ice Age 3, McDonald's has again added the twister fries to their menu. Now you could order the twister fries with their Icy Blue Sprite Float. And if you order a double cheeseburger, Big Mac, or a Quarter pounder I guarantee that you'll feel full (unless your more than six feet tall and around 200 pounds. hehehe).

As of now, i'm still fighting the urge to go back to a McDonald's near me because i've been eating this for almost everyday since it came back. hahaha!!

Imus Park - reinvented

Actually, this should have been posted a month ago but i've been quite busy. The old park had an old type of setting with the old spanish thing going on and it was quite pleasant. Now, there is a flagpole in the middle, the park benches are replaced with steel benches, the monument has been revamped and the whole floor is a big Philippine flag.

Personally, I still liked the old one setting. It felt more cozy than this new theme. Change is inevitable we learn to accept it.

Jollibee Delivery

It's been quite sometime since I last ordered from Jollibee to be delivered to my house. It's because there are two joints near my house. Unfortunately, this afternoon we were had a call that the office will be up for inspection. I called Jollibee's delivery number for Cavite, got my details, ordered and asked if I was paying cash or by credit card. I said by credit card, then a follow-up question came up -- Visa or Mastercard. I answered Mastercard. After more or less 30 mins our orders arrived. I was waiting how I should pay (although I had an idea when I paid in True Value, they had the GPRS swiper). After putting our order on the nearest table he pulledout the -- wireless swiper. We had a bit of trouble because Globe's signal (the swiper is connected thru Globe) is a bit on the weak side these past few days and had to swipe the card a couple of times before it went thru. Overall I liked the payment options that Jollibee is now offering (I also heard pizza hut or was it shakey's (?) has this offer but Citibank cards only) since I rarely have cash. Sad thing is the fries were a bit soggy since it was packed in the box while still hot.

First Day High

Today was the first day of school for my son. When we got to school he was very quite after the teacher found him a seat and he had the face that's almost ready to cry. Good thing he didn't. I wasn't worried until the teacher told all the parents to wait outside the classroom? Wait! Did she just said wait outside? The whole room had curtains over the windows and I didn't really now how to look after my kid. Oh well, all the parents were ushered outside and we were just told that if ever our kids would cry we would be called. Walked past a couple of windows till I saw one that one window had its curtain blown every now and then. I got to see what my son was doing. I was surprised that he was behaving himself unlike the other kids that kept running around the room while another was crying looking for her mom and dad.

Not 30 mins has passed and one of the kids already opened his lunch box and started eating his snack! Since it was the first day the teacher let it go and also asked the other students if they would like to eat their snacks and mostly said yes. Got a chance to get back inside and help my son out with his snack. Later, the parents were ushered out again. More than an hour later, I peeked back what was happening inside and the teacher was I think teaching them to read and after which they were asked to get their pencils and papers out. They were taught to write something in their notebooks or on the paper. (when we got home I looked at my son's notebook and he actually wrote number 1 plus scribbles and on the next page drew a couple of circles in order.) After two hours the bell rang and school was out. My sons first day of school is over and he seemed to enjoy it. Tomorrow i'll be bringing my PSP to kill my boredom since not once did he look for me. Kids do grow up fast.

Mrs. Fields Chewy Fudge

Before, whenever I was craving for Mrs. Fields cookies I had to run to the nearest Price Smart Shop (now called S&R). Until my dad got tired of paying for the annual fees of the membership card I had no other way to buy the box of 10s of the oh so soft Milk Chocolate cookies. (well, i could also go to the Mrs. Fields stalls but it had a different feel to it). Recently though, the local groceries started selling the cookies in packs and in different flavors (oatmeal raisin, milk chocolate, chewy fudge, and the one with peanuts). What I liked about this is now i've got the option how many of which I would get plus I could store it at the house and eat it whenever I felt like it. Unlike if you bought in the Mrs. Fields stall it's not packed in foil and have to consume it almost immediately.

On the downside, i'm beginning to crave more and more for the chewy fudge. Which is sooooo sweet and the chocolate almost melts in my hand while eating eat. Plus its chewy which what I like with cookies and it doesn't have that dry taste to it. The question now is, will I have the will power to fight the urge?

Donut Pizza?!

A couple of Friday's ago. Me and a couple other friends had the case of the munchies. Since we got lazy to go to the nearest 7-11, McDo or what not. We decided to trot down Gonuts Donuts, which was just less than a block away from where we were hanging out. Off we go, and lo and behold the rumors are true. You can get pizza from a donut shop. Only problem is, it's the size of a donuut. No matter. Since it's there why not try it out, right? I ordered two for myself. Hanzel, also bought two plus a couple of cookies. Mark, bought juice. My son ordered donut (you gotta get at least one right? hehe).

Well, it did taste like pizza (just like those mini pizza - e.g. jimini) plus it covered the whole surface. Bad thing is if you ordered the Garlic and Cheese or BBQ flavor you'll get the whole in the middle just like a regular donut. If I remember it correctly the price vary to either P30 or P35. It did taste good, as long as you eat it while it's hot. Only thing is, bitin!

Enrollment week

Just got my son enrolled at a local primary school. Now, I have to get him some school supplies, uniform, and books. Damnation! Next, i'll have to prepare the snacks and go to PTA's. This is not the part I like with having a kid.

Now I really have to get a new job. The expenses are piling up and I don't know how much longer I could cope up with this. Really wanted to have a work from home type of job so I still have enough free time plus have enough money for daily expenses and save for a rainy day.

Hope the tailor goes by tomorrow so my son's measurements could be jotted down for the uniform. Then buy the supplies needed for school. Good thing he's just in nursery so the stuff he needs are just a few notebooks and a couple of writing/coloring materials. Next week will be very bad for me, since we still haven't hired a new maid looks like i'll be the one sitting behind the classroom waiting for my son's class to finish. My job for being a parent really starts now.

DIY: Enigne Support Rebuild & Strengthening

I always get my rear engine support busted. I don't know how but I always seen to break it. I've searched over the net and some placed polyurethane from 3m called window weld or mixed polyurethane to a manageable consistency then poured it on the mount. Unfortunately here in the Philippines you don't get the liberty of just going to your local Ace hardware and picking up the stuff or order online and get the stuff at your doorstep after a few days because it's not available locally.

Not losing hope of getting my engine support reinforced. Went to the nearest Ace Hardware to look for something to try. Some said Silicon is another thing that could be used (tried on left and right engine supports and holding up pretty well.) but as I was searching the caulk tubes I came across Bostik's polyurethane sealant. On the label it said that it has high flexibility and since it being polyurethane I gather that it will be pretty tough. Unfortunately it only came in white but it doesn't matter since this will just be a experimental project.

The following day I got my busted front and rear engine supports as guinnea pigs. Cleaned and dried and wiped. Used joy liquid detergent (it does a good job of removing oil) and an old toothbrush to do the job. Left it alone for a day to let it dry thoroughly.

After more than an hour later and a broken caulk gun later (when you cut the tip of the long screw on tip of the caulk tube make the hole big. it will make your life a whole lot easier) the results are above. I just used a thick enough cardboard to spread the polyurethane around.

I let it sit for a week in our hot garage to let it cure (the outside maybe be dry but the inside might still be curing). Applied a couple of layers of black pylox to make it less of a standout. Viola! My busted engine mounts have been given a new lease of (abused) life. As of this writing the rear engine mount has been placed and seems to hold pretty well and I got less interior buzzing compared to my solid (refurbished) engine mount. I'll try to install the front tomorrow if i'm not to lazy to move.

update: I've installed the front mount. (darned thing got the bolt a bit bent so it was a pain to put back). Vibration wise, there is a bit more compared to replacement/OEM but feels smoother when shifting. Hope this thing lasts longer.

icore psp adaptor

I think i'm pretty unlucky with PSP charges. The pic above is my third one. The one that came with the PSP suddenly died. So what I did is I just purchased a replacement one by I-core. Unfortunately, after two weeks and only a few charges, the I-core died too. Good thing is the store replaced the damaged one even if they said that they only honor one week warranty (which is very absurd).

It's been a good couple of weeks and the charger above has survived a lot of abuse with charging the PSP. I'm still hoping that this one will last a whole lot longer. If not i'll have to buy an original one.

Generic Crystal Case for PSP Slim

I bought one of the generic crystal cases for the slim just so it could give some sort of protection to it whenever my 3 yr old son would play with the PSP. I honestly hate it! One, it fattens the slim up. Two, the hole for the analog controller is not big enough. Lastly, I don't like how it looks.

If not for my son I would never buy one of these nor touch it with a five foot pole. I really hate it. It's badly constructed and ruins the overall look of the PSP slim. I guess you really get what you paid for.

Ranting Episode

Right now, i'm losing my patience with my broadband connection. Namely, my Globe broadband internet connection. Yes, if you try speedtest.net it will give you a fairly decent speed but I could see that the needle is erratic, it's not a smooth curve going up. Plus if I ping websites, it timed out a couple of times. Even if i just plain surf the internet, it even gives me error pages meaning it timed the effin up!!

I don't know what the hell is happening again but i'm beggining to lose my patience with this kind of service. I've been upto my neck trying to calm myself down. It's been a good couple of hours and the pace has been going from bad to worse. I guess i'll sleep on this for awhile and pray to god that maybe when I wake up they might show some signs of improvement.

Globe broadband sucks bigtime as of the moment!!!!

Selecta Gold Series: Berry Strawberry

We have here another creation by Selecta which they call the Gold Series. They called 3 top chefs to create their own version of a classic ice cream flavor. I tried the Berry Strawberry since I love strawberries it was an easy decision for me. This promises to have the vanilla ice cream more creamy and have chunks of strawberry in them.

When I tried it out, yes the ice cream is much more creamier than the Creations version. But alas, as I finished the 800mL (after a few days of course) I just found I chunk of strawberry. I was very disappointed since the Creations version had lots more strawberries in them. Maybe I was just out of luck but only one piece is... well... very disappointing. On the upside, the ice cream itself was creamier and satisfying enough.

A day of mourning...

Today, my pet dog passed away. He's been with me for the past couple of years. He's destroyed countless stuff, pissed on a lot of plants, left poo-poo almost everywhere, and stuck with me when i'm down.

For the past couple of days he seemed unenergetic. He wasn't finishing his meals. Then 2 or 3 days ago I had to move him to the garage to stand guard. Unfortunately I was not able to move him to the backyard the following morning because I had errands to do and forgot to ask someone else to do it. That night he looked more weak, not even touching his meal.

Last night I contacted the Vet to have him checked. The vet told me she was available after lunch. Since I was unable to sleep I kept on checking my dog. He was vomiting yellowish stuff every now and then and was hardly standing up. I slept for a couple of hours and checked him this morning and he was still breathing but he looked much weaker now. I went back to sleep since the vet would only be free after lunch. As I woke up after lunch, I went downstairs to check on my dog. Alas! when I touched him, he was not responding and rigor mortis has set in. He could not wait for the vet and went to a better place.

T-Mobile Sidekick

A few weeks back I got a hold of 3 classic cellphones from T-Mobile. A Sony Ericsson T616, Sidekick 2, and a Sidekick 3. I was then curious if a Sidekick would work here in the Philippines. After much surfing I found out that most of the features (email and IM) could not be activated since it passes through T-mobile and Sharp's servers. So I just tried to see if I could just make it work here even for just calling and texting. Further research says that the original owner should call T-Mobile to get a sim subsidy for a local sim to work. Since it was just sent to me from the US, I won't go through the trouble. But further prodding shows signs that the SK 3 could be made to work here. Here's what I did:

- After the phone asks for a sim unlock code, just press cancel

- Go to Settings and select Sim Center

- Choose Enable Sim Password (If already enabled select change password)

- Type in the password then re-enter

- On the "waiting for activation" screen, Press Menu + L to bypass

- Go to settings and select network options > Rescan and Select Manually

- Select your network and your good to call and text

Hope this helps. Although being able to use only half of it's potential sucks but if you just want to play with it, this is a good way to make it work.